Biking The
Verrazano
Narrows to Coney Island(17 miles from the B.B. to Coney
Island)

According to
this australopithecine I used
to drink with when I lived in the backwaters of Virginia -- who
claimed
to have witnessed the whole thing -- the Narrows were formed
when a runaway glacier went crashing through the lower boundaries of a
great inland sea, opening it to the nearby Atlantic Ocean and forming
our
beloved Hudson Estuary.

And if you do this ride on a day when the
tides are particularly
high and the wind is strong and slightly stormy and has been building
for
several days out of the west,
you'll know that the old dinosaur spoke true,
especially when that rogue waves crashes over the seawall and
washes
you clean with primordial sea water and heavy, salt laden air.
Urban
biking at it's finest -- amen!!

Similar to it's sister trip, where we peddle
to Coney
Island via the Ocean Parkway bike path, this trip takes you through a
smorgasbord
of New York neighborhoods, including . . . lower
Manhattan,
City Hall, the Brooklyn Bridge and waterfront, the Promenade, Park
Slope,
Prospect Park, Sunset Park, Bay Ridge, etc, etc, before climaxing with
a breath taking ride through the Verrazano Narrows.

That said, start at the Brooklyn
Bridge. Later editions of these pages will detail the downtown
labyrinth
of how to get to the Brooklyn Bridge, from both east and west side, but
for now we start at BB.

Slip into low gear and enjoy the view, but
please be aware
that visiting tourists are so awed by our local vistas that they have
trouble
remembering whether they are bikes or bipeds and inadvertently wander
into
the wrong lane. So please don't hurt our tourist industry by running
down
any strange looking fellow with a camera -- hell, it could be me.

After you cross the bridge and are descending
into Brooklyn,
bear to the left. Very shortly after being back on the land side,
the bike path bifurcates with the right heading to downtown Brooklyn,
the
left, the waterfront. Slow down and be prepared to stop. For
while
the right path gradually slows over the length of a very long declining
plane, the left stops abruptly right before a set of very steep stairs
that take you down to street level. And while I am sure
there
are one or two of you who could probably negotiate down those stairs at
full throttle, for the rest of us, it would just be a cheap rerun of
ER.

So, after arriving -- safely -- at street
level, hang
the left on Cadman Plaza E., which immediately turns into Washington
Street,
and continue for two blocks until you come to Front Street. Take a left
on Front Street and follow it until it ends; at that intersection, turn
right, heading towards the water and the ferry terminal.

Travel approximately one block and turn left
at the Texaco
sign on Everit Street. Everit Street is a steep, one way (the
wrong
way), but low trafficked street, and turns into Columbia Hts.
Proceed
up the hill. At the top of the hill, turn right on Orange Street
to enter the Promenade. The Promenade will be under various
stages
of construction for the next two years, but the view is phenomenal and
still worth the digression. Continue on the Promenade or on Columbia
Hts
until you come to Montague Street. Montague Street is also one
way
the wrong way, but again low trafficked, and worth the trip because of
all the shops and restaurants along the way. Now comes the tricky
part: from the Brooklyn Bridge to Prospect Park is a scant four miles;
however, because of a multiplicity of highways, one way and dead end
streets,
the Gowanus Canal cutting off Park Slope from South Brooklyn, not to
mention
a few maniacally trafficked streets, it becomes necessary to dogleg the
next section, taking advantage of quite neighborhoods, low traffic, and
the all important bridge over the Gowanus Canal. See map above.

So, continuing on Montague Street to a right
on Henry
Street. Take Henry Street for approximately 20 blocks -- crossing
over Atlantic Avenue in the process -- to a left on Union Street.
Take Union for 4 blocks to a right on Hoyt Street. Travel Hoyt for 7
block
until you come to 3rd Street, where you take a left. Take 3rd
Street
across the Gowanus Canal, continuing on through all of Park Slope,
until
you reach the entrance to Prospect Park. Both Carol and Union
Street
have a bridge that takes you across the Gowanus Canal, but they will
take
you through heavier traffic, while the 3rd Street route takes you
through
a very sedate section of Park Slope and enters right into Prospect Park.

Enter the park at 3rd street and take the
first right,
following it to the far southern end, approximately 3 miles. Exit
the park at the Ocean Pkwy/Coney Isle exit.

Coming from the park, cross the street
towards the Commerce Bank. Travel away
from the park and around the Commerce Bank
corner,
heading towards the foot bridge and moving away from the traffic
circle.
Skip the first foot bridge -- the one that crosses perpendicular to
your
path. In the next block, at 7th street, move to the left side of
the street and head up the entrance ramp of the second foot bridge. The
entrance to this bridge parallels the street you are traveling. You'll
know you are on the right bridge as is crosses a six lane
highway.
Continue across the bridge and down the other side. At the
intersection
at 5th street, at the traffic light, there will be a playground to your
right and across the street, on your left, a school. Take a left
on 5th street and travel 2 blocks, taking the next right on
Albemarle
Road.

Follow Albemarle Road five
blocks to where
it segues into Tehma Street. Take Tehma two blocks to 36th Street
and dog leg around with a left then a right, down 13th Avenue.
Now
if this is Saturday, you are going to have an extraordinarily pleasant
ride. 13th Avenue is part of both Sunset Park and Borough Park and both
neighborhoods are strongly orthodox, so most of the shops are
closed
and there is very little traffic down this one way street.

Follow 13th Avenue 34 blocks until a hard
right at 70th
Street. Follow 70th Street west (well, actually north west)
pretty
much until you reach the water. Be aware that 70th Street turns into
Ovington Avenue after you cross the Gowanus Expressway, and it dead
ends
into Ridge Avenue, where a quick right and then a left will dogleg you
onto Bayridge Avenue (69th Street), which runs into the tunnel which
takes
you under the highway and right to the water. This is not as
complicated
as it sounds as you will be very aware of heading towards the river in
the final approach. And of course there are many places along the
way where the Verrazano Bridge is visible to your left.

At the river, hang a left.
Of course
that's after basking in the sunshine and saltwater air of the local
fishing
pier. Of the Verrazano bike path itself, I can't say
enough.
So maybe I should say nothing. Follow it and enjoy. If it's
your first time, stop often and drink in the feeling and the
view.
For all you other jaded urban riders, follow it to its terminus at the
Toy's 'r Us parking lot, where youhang a left and move inland a block, taking the
right
onto the Shore Parkway service road. I alternate
between
using the service road and the sidewalk depending on traffic and
conditions.
There are many people on the sidewalk for the first half block, but
then
after that it's empty the whole rest of the way. Follow the
service
road until it ends, at which point hang a hard left to the next
block.
You are now at the intersection of Bay52 and Cropsey Avenue and there
will
be a huge dinner on the opposite corner.
Take the right and stay
on the sidewalk until you cross over the bridge which takes you across
the Coney Island creek. While it probably
doesn't need saying, since
hopefully
you've been noticing the approaching Parachute Jump from somewhere
along
the Verrazano,just
keep heading for the Jump.At Coney Island, the
subways are on Surf
Avenue. One is
at the intersection of Stilwell Avenue, the other is at West 8th
Street, right across from the NY Aquarium.